Significance of Anticardiolipin Antibodies on Short and Long Term Allograft Survival and Function following Kidney Transplantation

The significance of anticardiolipin antibodies (ACAs) prior to renal transplantation is unclear. We studied a cohort of 337 patients who underwent renal transplantation from 1996 to 2001. Follow-up continued until allograft loss, patient death or 31 December 2002. The primary outcome was a composite endpoint of death-censored allograft loss or a 25% reduction in estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR) from 1-month post-transplant. Secondary outcomes were allograft loss, a 25% reduction in GFR, acute rejection and creatinine at 1 year. IgG and IgM ACA titers were positive (> or =15) in 18.1% of recipients. There were no significant differences at baseline between recipients, except coumadin therapy in those with positive ACA titers (20% vs. 7.4%). Post-transplant, there was no increase in the primary outcome in ACA-positive patients, even after adjustment for anticoagulation with coumadin (HR = 1.42 [0.68, 2.96]). There was no difference in secondary outcomes between those with or without positive titers. Two of five patients with very high titers (>50) who were not anticoagulated had early graft loss. A positive ACA titer prior to kidney transplantation was not associated with inferior renal outcomes after transplantation, although more research is required to address the prognostic significance of very high ACA titers.     

内毒素核心糖脂单克隆抗体的血清学反应性及保护作用的初步研究

以S.minnesota R595菌为免疫原,通过细胞融合获得8株分泌抗核心糖脂单抗的杂交瘤细胞系。对其中的两株代表性单抗2D6E7和3H4 2F7的血清学反应性以及在小鼠Hb/Mu腹腔感染模型中的保护作用进行了初步研究。菌体吸收试验和间接免疫荧光试验(ⅡF)表明,单抗能与多种革兰氏阴性杆菌(GNB)产生交叉反应,并且光滑型GNB的煮沸菌体荧光染色呈阳性,活菌染色呈阴性。保护性试验结果表明,3H4 2F7单抗能显著提高S.minnesota(野生菌株),鼠伤寒杆菌和E.Coli等光滑型GNB攻击的小鼠存活率(P<0.05),显示出抗核心糖脂单抗的良好交叉保护作用。若攻击前、后2h或攻击同时输入单抗3H4 2F7,对光滑型GNB的感染均有明显保护效果(P<0.05);2D6 E7单抗未表现有保护活性。     

Response of astrocytes to experimental herpetic infection

Research Institute of Children's Infectious Diseases, Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, St. Petersburg. Institute of Neurology, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow. (Presented by Academician of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences D. S. Sarkisov.) Translated from Byulleten' Éksperimental'noi Biologii i Meditsiny, Vol. 114, No. 11, pp. 548–551, November, 1992.     

全雄激素阻断治疗晚期前列腺癌

为了评价全雄激素阻断治疗晚期前列腺癌的疗效，采用双侧睾丸切除、Ｆｌｕｔａｍｉｄｅ和Ｆｉｎａｓｔｅｒｉｄ联合治疗Ｄ２期前列腺癌病人５例。随访１５～２０个月，结果ＰＳＡ均正常，前列腺体积缩小６１．２％～６９．３％，有显著性差异（Ｐ＜０．０１），骨转移灶缩小、部分消失，积水肾脏完全恢复正常，所有病人治疗后全部有效。表明全雄激素阻断对晚期前列腺癌有良好的治疗效果。提出在三个层次上阻断雄激素治疗晚期前列腺癌的策略。     

A cross-reactive idiotype in scleroderma

Autoantibodies to centromere proteins (anti-CENPs) and to topoisomerase-I are highly specific for scleroderma. Unlike most autoantibodies in other diseases, these autoantibodies are mutually exclusive. We have analysed the idiotypes (Ids) expressed by anti-CENP-B, antitopoisomerase-I, and IgGs from 20 scleroderma patients. Rabbit anti-Ids were prepared to antitopoisomerase-I from two scleroderma patients, and to anti-CENP-B from four patients. These six anti-Ids were used to study the purified autoantibodies from 20 scleroderma patients: four antitopoisomerase-I, 10 anti-CENP-B, and six purified IgG from scleroderma patients who were negative for both autoantibodies. In addition, we studied sera from 40 normal autoantibody-negative controls, and sera and purified immunoglobulins from 17 systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients containing high titres of anti-double-stranded DNA, and/or autoantibodies to extractable nuclear antigens (ENA). Using direct binding, and competitive inhibition ELISAs and immunoblots, we identified an Id present in the heavy chains of all the affinity-purified antitopoisomerase-I, and anti-CENP-B. Interestingly, this Id was also present in the immunoglobulins of the scleroderma patients who had neither of the two autoantibodies. By contrast, cross-reactive Id-EM was not found in the sera or immunoglobulins from 17 SLE patients, or in the sera from 40 normal subjects. Several samples from two patients showed that this cross-reactive Id-EM was stable over time. The scleroderma disease-specific autoantibodies may be identified through a common structural feature at the variable region of the heavy chain: cross-reactive Id-EM.     

Interaction of Heparin With Antiphospholipid Antibodies (APA) From the Sera of Women With Recurrent Pregnancy Loss (RPL)

PROBLEM: To determine if heparin may act directly with antiphospholipid antibodies (APA) to prevent recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL). METHOD: Patients were seen at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. Twenty women with a history of RPL (≥3 miscarriages), positive APA, and an otherwise normal evaluation were treated with heparin in two daily subcutaneous dosages during a successful pregnancy. APA levels were obtained prior to conception and again at 6, 20, and 30 weeks. RESULTS: Heparin reduced APA binding to cardiolipin and phosphatidylserine in a dose-dependent fashion in ELISA. Heparin affinity chromatography absorbed over 80% of the IgG anticardiolipin antibody in serum from women with high levels of APA. Women treated with increasing dosages of heparin during pregnancy had inversely decreasing levels of IgG anticardiolipin antibody. CONCLUSION: Heparin may act by directly binding APA in vivo, thereby decreasing the adverse effects of APA in women with APA associated RPL.     

Ontogeny and thymus-dependence of T cell surface antigens in Xenopus : flow cytometric studies on monoclonal antibody-stained thymus and spleen

Recently generated anti-Xenopus T cell monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to the 120 kDA XTLA-1 determinant and against the putative CD5 and CD8 homologues, together with anti-IgM and anti-MHC class II mAbs, are used in dual colour flow cytometric experiments to characterize cell surface antigenic expression on lymphocytes in thymus and spleen of Xenopus laevis during larval and early adult life and also in metamorphosis-inhibited animals. Histological confirmation of T cell emergence early in larval ontogeny is supplied by cryostat sections stained for CD8. Five-day thymectomy i.e. prior to T-lineage cell differentiation in the thymus, abolishes T cell marker expression in the spleen for up to 1 year. Moreover, late larval (20 days) or early adult (3 months) thymectomy (i.e. removal after peripheralization of T cells has occurred) also leads to severe depletion of mAb-defined T cells in the spleen.     

Facilitation of ethanol consumption by intracerebroventricular infusions of corticosterone

Male Wistar rats bearing intracerebroventricular (ICV) cannulae and with simultaneous access to 6% ethanol and water were subjected to adrenalectomy (ADX) or sham surgery. ADX decreased ethanol intake. Starting a few days later, the animals received ICV infusions with 100 μg corticosterone acetate (CORT) with 2-to 3-day intervals for 2 weeks. ICV CORT, but not SC CORT at the same dose, restored ethanol consumption in ADX rats to preoperative levels, whereas vehicle infusions (propylene, glycol) did not. Adrenally intact animals, which normally consumed moderate amounts of ethanol (≈0.5 g/kg per day), also showed a robust effect of ICV infusions of CORT, whereas this facilitatory effect was not observed in high consumers (≈3.0 g/kg per day). The suppressive effect of ADX on ethanol intake was not reproduced by concurrent and repeated ICV infusions of intracellular mineralocorticoid (RU 28318) and glucocorticoid (mifepristone) receptor blockers. It is concluded that CORT stimulates alcohol consumption by acting in the brain, probably by way of neuronal membrane mechanisms.     

呋苄青霉素药代动力学及组织分布的研究

呋苄青霉素是由我国开发成功的一个酰脲类青霉素。本项研究采用微生物法,以狗和正常人为受试对象,以氧哌嗪青霉素和羧苄青霉素为对照进行药代动力学研究,结果表明,3个药的药—时曲线符合二室开放式模型,呋苄青霉素较其它对照药具较高的即刻血浓度和较低的肾清除率。用微生物法和放射自显影法测定的呋苄青霉素在小鼠体内组织分布汪明,呋苄青霉素广泛分布于体内各组织,尤其在肺、肝、肠中的浓度明显高于羧苄青霉素。